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Labour hire workers will be paid more and intentional wage theft will be criminalised after Employment Minister Tony Burke secured a surprise deal with Senate crossbenchers to pass his same job, same pay laws.
Unions hailed the changes while peak business groups and the Coalition labelled it a sneaky deal that would increase business costs and hinder the economy.
Employment Minister Tony Burke (centre) announces his deal with Senate crossbenchers.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
Burke clinched the political victory – which split the government’s workplace bill in two but allowed its controversial labour hire changes to go through the Senate on the final sitting day of the year – after weeks of talks with independents Jacqui Lambie and David Pocock.
Gig economy and casual worker reforms were not included in the agreement, which was also backed by independent senator Lidia Thorpe and the Greens, and will be voted on next year.
Business groups representing companies including BHP and Qantas, which both use labour hire, spent millions campaigning against the same job, same pay changes, which aim to ensure employers don’t undercut enterprise agreements by bringing in auxiliary workers on lower wages.
“Today is a really good day for workers’ wages and a really good day for workers’ safety,” Burke said, spruiking a win on a key Labor agenda item after a fortnight in which Labor also won support for environmental, water and National Disability and Insurance Scheme reforms.
“People are being underpaid by the labour hire loophole, that the small minority of employers think it’s okay to steal from a worker. Those days are over.”
In other changes, employers who deliberately underpay workers could be jailed for up to 10 years or fined $7.8 million, rather than merely being forced to pay back workers. Firms with 15 or fewer employees will be exempt from the new rules.
Greens leader Adam Bandt, who secured the criminalisation of superannuation theft in the bill, said his party would continue to campaign next year for a so-called right to disconnect from work emails and calls after-hours.
Other parts of the deal with Lambie and Pocock included criminalising industrial manslaughter; a review of the national authority for work safety and workers’ compensation Comcare; and boosting support for first responders with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Senators Jacqui Lambie and David Pocock with Burke on Thursday.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
Pocock, who along with Lambie initially wanted to push the labour hire changes into next year, said the deal proved parliament could work collaboratively.
“This is democracy working,” he said. “Being able to deliver for workers and first responders now [on] things that have consensus. And we’ve both committed to working in good faith on the rest of the bill.”
Pocock and Lambie said the labour hire overhaul would stop companies using the practice to pay workers less and boost profits.
“I’ve had enough of having 12 different lots of payments for hosties out there when I get on a plane, knowing that they’re not getting paid the money that they should be paid,” Lambie said.
“I’m sick and tired of miners doing the same damn job where some [are getting] $30,000 [less] a year.”
Opposition industrial relations spokeswoman Michaelia Cash warned the new rules would make businesses more costly to run, which would lead to firms hiking prices.
“They’ve rushed the bill through on the last day of sitting with no debate,” Cash said, arguing the policy was a case of Labor being led astray by trade unions.
Senator Michaelia Cash slammed the deal.Credit: James Brickwood.
Australian Council of Trade Unions secretary Sally McManus said “companies that will be crying loudest about these changes are some of Australia’s biggest and most profitable”, as big business signalled it would fight the remainder of the proposed bill.
Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry boss Andrew McKellar said: “There is a breach of trust here. This is a dishonourable deal that has been done in the shadow of the Christmas recess.”
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